(1)
kṛpā koro vaiṣṇava ṭhākura, sambandha jāniyā
bhajite bhajite, abhimāna hau dūra
(2)
‘āmi to vaiṣṇava’, e buddhi hoile, amānī nā ho’bo āmi
pratiṣthāśā āsi’, hṛdoya dūṣibe, hoibo niraya-gāmī
(3)
tomāra kińkora, āpane jānibo, ‘guru’-abhimāna tyaji’
tomāra ucchiṣṭha, pada-jala-reṇu, sadā niṣkapaṭe bhaji
(1)
duṣṭa mana! tumi kisera vaiṣṇava?
pratiṣṭhāra tare, nirjanera ghare,
tava ‘ari nāma” kevala ‘kaitava”
(2)
jaḍera pratiṣṭhā, śukarer viṣṭhā,
jāna nā ki tāhā ‘māyāra vaibhava”
kanaka-kāminī, divasa-yāminī
bhāviyā ki kāja, anitya se saba
(3)
tomāra kanaka, bhogera janaka,
kanakera dvāre sevaha ‘mādhava”
kaminīra kāma, nahe tava dhāma
tāhāra–mālika kevala ‘yādava”
Q : What should the mentality of practitioners like us be?
A. : A practitioner should know that anartha-nivrtti is the last platform before attaining the goal of life. Part of that understanding is to know that unfavorable situations create situations favorable for devotional service in the next moment. If one develops the mentality that everything in this world is meant for Krsna’s service, then the propensity for material enjoyment cannot disturb him. We should all gladly accept whatever pleases Krsna. If Krsna is pleased by making me averse to Him, then I should accept that. Such dependence on the Supreme Lord will protect us. When hearing and chanting about the Lord become prominent in our lives, anarthas are gradually and
automatically destroyed. We should proceed on the path of devotional service by knowing firmly that following in the footsteps of the eternally perfected spiritual master is the only alternative for attaining our ultimate goal of life.
Q&A by Gaudiya Gosthipati Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami Thakura Prabhupada
Amrta Vani
A person may have once had good intentions, but after some time he again turns to sinful life.
Why?
It is because he did not spare time to hear the transcendental topics of Hari, or perhaps he became inattentive, only pretending to hear. He did not at all try to stay aloof from his endeavors for apparent happiness; rather, he became busy looking for sensory happiness on the advice of crooked people. If we take shelter of the Lord’s lotus feet, whether we are educated or uneducated, whether we have strength or no strength, there will be no problem. Actually, the living entity is transcendental. It is only when he thinks himself bound by the qualities of material nature that he becomes attached to the material world.
Sri Sarasvati Samlapa
The moment we forget “who am I?” our degradation begins. We become absorbed in various temptations extended to us by material existence. The moment we become even slightly careless, the witch of the illusory energy immediately captures us by the neck and devours us. Unless we constantly hear the topics of the Supreme Lord meant for swanlike persons, there is no way to free ourselves of the clutch of the illusory energy.
Sri Sarasvati Samlapa
– One who can protect me from the death that is this material life, is Guru.
– One who can protect me from the fear of death, is Guru.
– One by going to whom I do not have to go to anyone else, by listening to whom I do not have to listen to anyone else, is Guru.
– The reservoir of grace whom the Supreme Lord, the personification of the supreme good, has made responsible for looking after my welfare, is my Guru.
– One by whose grace I can get rid of my controlling ego, is Guru.
– One who brings the revealed truth to us, who by showering us with such truth can make us humbler than a blade of grass and more tolerant than a tree, is Guru.
– One who makes us respectful to others without having any desire for respect from others, who can manifest transcendental kirtan in our mouths by transferring his own potency, of the Lord, is Guru.
– Only the lotus feet of Sri Guru can free us from the shackles of illusion.
– One who gives me the transcendental knowledge that all the people of the world are respectable and worshipable by me, that the whole world is meant for service to Guru and everyone is my Guru, that I am a servitor of Krishna, and that service to Krishna is my only duty, is Sri Guru.
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami Thakur Prabhupada
Srimad Bhagavat Tatparya
Gaudiya Gosthipati Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami Thakur
The truth of the matter is—we tend to always invite the path of danger. Even if we try to discuss topics concerning our ultimate benefit, we will always fail to realize the transcendental nature of the Absolute Truth. Besides this, we are always afflicted with various diseases and causes of lamentation, and we are dependent upon others. There is no one in this world who can deliver us from the great danger we face—only the dearmost associates of Sri Hari and no one else are actually able to show us the true path of auspiciousness.
The Supreme Lord is the absolute complete whole. As long as we remain attracted to incomplete objects, and as long as false ego, false pride and false proprietorship remain prominent within our hearts, we cannot make any progress on the path of realizing the Absolute Truth.
What has Sri Caitanyadeva abstracted from Srimad Bhagavatam ? The worship of the Supreme Lord, Sri Krsna. This is the ultimate teaching of Srimad-Bhagavatam .
Gopāl Govinda Mahanta
Āchāryya vandana
jayare jayare jaya paramahaṁsa mahāśay
śrī bhaktisiddhānta sarasvatī
gosvāmī ṭhākura jaya parama koruṇāmoy
dīnahīna agatira gati
(1) All glories, all glories to the topmost personality, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Saraswatī Goswāmī Ṭhākur, who is an ocean of mercy and the only resort for the fallen souls.
nilāchale hoiyā uday
śrī gauḍamaṇḍale āsi’ prema bhakti parakāśi’
jivera nāśilā bhava-bhay
(2) He made his advent in Śrī Nilāchala, Śrī Puri Dhām. He came to the holy Dhām of Mahāprabhu, manifesting the line of pure devotion and destroying the fear of material life of the conditioned souls.
tomāra mahimā gāi heno sādhya mora nāi
tobe pāri jodi deho śakti
viśvahite avirata āchāra-prachāre rata
viśuddha śrī rūpānuga bhakti
(3) I have no capacity to sing your glories. Only if you empower me can I do so. You are travelling unceasingly all over India, practising and preaching in a dedicated way, the pure and genuine line of devotion in the current of Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmī.
Vaktritavali by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami Thakura Prabhupada
Due to an absence of hearing the topics of Hari from the mouth of saintly persons the bodily and mental propensities exhibit…
If by good association we are given the chance to remain aloof from people busy satisfying their animal propensities, only then can we hope for our own well-being. When people fall into bad association, they consider themselves expert and sometimes become crazy. We should not associate with anyone other than those engaged always in Lord Hari’s service. To worship Hari is the perfection of human life. Don’t waste time. Immediately start your worship of Lord Hari. With firm enthusiasm and confidence dedicate your human form of life to securing the ultimate goal.
If we waste time, other godless and sinful people will have the chance to approach us and influence us with their bad ideals.
Jagad Guru Gaudiya Gosthipati Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami Prabhupada Letter
Dear object of my affection,
I have received a pencil written letter from you. If the living entity has bhakti for Bhagavān, he has no cause for dissatisfaction. On this Earth, it is only when we are averse to service to Bhagavān that we become subject to the results of our actions [karma]. As a result of our karma, we sometimes relish joy and love, and at other times, we feel sorrow and contempt. When understanding awakens about the necessity of serving Bhagavān, no suffering or pleasure will affect us.
Always apply your mind to the service of Bhagavān and no one will be able to harm you. If you become restless, or if you express dissatisfaction with anyone during your sojourn on this Earth, your mind will not gravitate to the subject of how to serve Bhagavān. Argument, violence, and mental perturbation or conflict will prevent you from serving Hari.
Therefore, equip yourself with the quality of tolerance, like a tree, and stay in Śyamanta-Pañcaka [in Kurukṣetra] as Bhagavān desires. Wait for the day that Śrī Gaurahari sends you elsewhere. If you can do this, you will meet with auspiciousness.
Your eternal well-wisher,
Śrī Siddhānta Sarasvatī